Flag Signal Drill

Translator: Cinder Translations

...

"Earl Grayman, I've drafted a preliminary flag signaling scheme. Please review it."

The day after the council's decision to prepare for military readiness, Miss "D'Arshi" found Paul to present her research findings.

Paul was delighted. "Oh? This is exactly what we needed."

Eileen was puzzled. "Earl Grayman, what do you mean?"

"Well... to be frank, we have some 'minor friction' with our southern neighbors. We may need to employ some special communication methods."

Eileen understood, feeling a touch of disdain. "Men are truly a savage lot, always resorting to force at the drop of a hat. Couldn't they just sit down and talk at a table?"

Reflecting on the rebellion in the southern kingdom that nearly ruined her life, she lamented the unfairness of creation. "If only the world were led by women, there would certainly be no wars."

She wasn't particularly worried about Paul unless there was deep-seated enmity between the two families. Local lords generally refrained from fatal actions against each other. Even if one side was captured, the victor would treat the captive well, provide good food and drink, and demand ransom from their family before releasing them.

The truly unfortunate were the soldiers conscripted by force and the civilians plundered. Few lords cared about their lives; in the eyes of the aristocracy, they were expendable.

Paul opened the thick album handed to him by Miss "D'Arshi".

The pages were filled with various figures holding flags in different positions, each annotated with detailed meanings. Some complex messages required several poses to convey.

"Have all the officers at the staff headquarters reviewed this?"

"Yes, Earl Grayman. This was finalized after thorough consultation with them."

Remembering her initial struggles upon taking up this job, Eileen felt a twinge of annoyance. Those officers insisted on having her sign some confidentiality agreement before she could begin work, and they made sure she thoroughly understood everything.

The agreement essentially meant she couldn't disclose anything related to her work with the army or anything she saw there to anyone else.

What was even more absurd was that these guys had to take a confidentiality exam every so often.

"I, Eileen Rodney, second princess of the Aldor Kingdom, am a woman of my word. How can people distrust me like this?"

Thinking about it, she complained to Paul about the army's confidentiality protocols.

Paul chuckled and reassured her, "It's unavoidable; rules are rules. Besides, it's not just you, even those officers at the staff headquarters have to undergo regular reviews, just like you."

She found some peace of mind in that.

However, the situation in the Alden Army was quite different from what she had previously understood about armies. Her elder sister was also in charge of soldiers and often spoke to her about military matters, and she had even visited the military camp with her elder sister.

In the Alden Army, the members of the military were different from those in the kingdom's government army, and not only was there a strict system of confidentiality, but there was also a relative lack of separation between superiors and subordinates, and there were many exchanges between officers and soldiers.

However, in the kingdom's military, the officers and soldiers were simply different species living in two worlds, the officers were all born in noble families, while the soldiers came from the common people or slaves, the barracks were a miniature society, and everything in society naturally was mirrored in the barracks.

She speculated that this was because the members of the team were born from the bottom.

Eileen learned that in addition to her, except for Staff Sergeant Schroder, who could be called a "noble" knight, the others were born in the territories of ordinary people or slaves.

Paul read through the album from beginning to end and felt that there were no problems. The battlefield commands he had envisioned had been covered almost entirely.

"Miss D'Arshi, shall we schedule a drill to see how it works?"

"During the development of this system, the staff headquarters allocated a platoon and a gun group to study at any time, and now they are very proficient in this flag signaling system."

Paul was very satisfied. "I'll inform the staff headquarters immediately to arrange the drill."

...

A vast open area on the southern shore of Lake Wes was temporarily designated as a training ground, strictly off-limits to unauthorized personnel.

All troops stationed in the town of Alden had assembled here to witness a demonstration of flag signaling.

Paul and the officers stood on a high ground, with two trained "signal soldiers" stationed in front of them.

Of course, the female advisor was also with Paul and the others.

To their southwest, a platoon of riflemen and a gun crew were deployed at a great distance, visible only through binoculars.

Far to their southeast and due south, several large circles marked with lime powder were clearly delineated, designated as firing ranges for the artillery.

Inside these circles stood numerous scarecrows. After the artillery fired, the riflemen would use these scarecrows as targets for shooting or bayonet drills.

Once everything was ready, the exercise began.

Paul began, "Order the artillery to fire at the enemy due south."

A signal soldier immediately signaled to the artillery stationed in the southwest.

On the artillery side, there were also four signal soldiers: two for artillery communication and two for infantry.

One signal soldier, constantly observing with a telescope, anxiously shouted, "Here comes the order! It's for the artillery."

Through his telescope, he saw the signal soldier next to Earl Grayman waving the flag.

Without blinking, he observed their actions. After the first round of operations, his brain accurately interpreted the message they intended to convey.

He instructed his companion beside him, "Confirm receipt!"

His companion nodded and signaled back to the high ground where the officers were stationed, confirming receipt of the command.

The signal soldier who had been using the telescope quickly relayed the received command to the artillery: "Command is to continue firing at the targets due south of Headquarters."

"Let's go, lads!"

Under the command of the gunnery sergeant, the artillerymen adjusted their cannons to aim at the target area southeast of their position. Ammunition was already loaded, and after a slight adjustment in elevation, they began firing.

After firing five rounds in succession, a signal soldier from the infantry platoon responsible for observation shouted, "Infantry platoon advancing towards the targets south of Headquarters!"

The sound of marching drums accompanied by the beat and the orders of the platoon leader, the infantrymen armed with rifles formed a line and advanced southeast.

As they advanced, the artillery shells fired from behind them occasionally whistled overhead. They would not stop until receiving new orders or risk hitting friendly forces.

On the high ground to the north, Paul and the others watched with great satisfaction as the infantry platoon advanced near the target, fired a round of volleys, and then charged.

"Excellent!" Paul exclaimed sincerely, recalling a Chinese phrase: 如臂使指 (as if the arm could point at will).

TL Note: It implies how he could control them as if they were his arms

He bowed to Miss "D'Arshi," expressing his gratitude. "Thank you for your contribution. This is exactly what I wanted."

Eileen listened, feeling proud but still modestly replied, "It's my job, Earl."

"Let's test some other commands!"

Paul rubbed his hands excitedly, addressing everyone.

(End of the Chapter)